title: Living serodiscordantly in Papua New Guinea: sexual practices of HIV-positive people on ART by serostatus of regular heterosexual partner.
abstract: This paper examines condom use in intimate relationships amongst Papua New Guineans on antiretroviral therapy (ART). These findings are from a mixed-method study in six provinces throughout Papua New Guinea (PNG). A total of 374 HIV-positive adult Papua New Guineans, over the age of 16 and on ART for more than two weeks were recruited using a non-probability, convenience sampling methodology. Participants were recruited through ART prescribing sites, People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) drop-in clinics and support groups. A small number (36) also participated in in-depth interviews. Of the sample 226 (60.4%) were women and 148 (39.6%) were men. The majority of the sample was aged below 40 years, with a median age of 30 years. Of the sample who were in a regular relationship 64.7% identified themselves as being in a relationship where both they and their partner were HIV-positive (seroconcordant). Smaller proportions (21.0%) reported being in a relationship with a HIV-negative partner (serodiscordant), or in a relationship where they were not aware of their partner's HIV status (14.3%). The majority of participants who reported having a regular partner also reported having disclosed their HIV serostatus to their partner (91.8%). A significantly greater proportion of participants who reported being in relationships where they did not know the status of their partner, also reported living in the Southern Region of PNG (52.9%), while the majority of those in seroconcordant relationships lived in the Highlands Region (71.2%). There did not appear to be any differences in sexual practice of using condoms between the three groups. Knowledge of serostatus is important for "positive prevention".
authors.affiliation: Papua New Guinea Institute of Medical Research, Papua New Guinea. angela.kelly@pngimr.org.pg
authors.forename: Angela
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kelly
authors.forename: Martha
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kupul
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Frankland
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Worth
authors.forename: Somu
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nosi
authors.forename: Agnes
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mek
authors.forename: Barbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Kepa
authors.forename: Lucy
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Walizopa
authors.forename: Rebecca
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Emori
authors.forename: Lawrencia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Pirpir
authors.forename: Frances
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Akuani
authors.forename: Brenda
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Cangah
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Siba
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D044966:Anti-Retroviral Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D017280:Condoms / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006679:HIV Seropositivity / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010219:Papua New Guinea / Q000453:epidemiology; D036301:Qualitative Research; D012309:Risk-Taking; D012725:Sexual Behavior / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012747:Sexual Partners / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D044966:Anti-Retroviral Agents